London Contracts and Travel

[texto]

As we all know majority of contracts are in London area and the rates are great. What do contractors living in northern areas do? I mean if you get a contract worth 500-600/day, would you stay in London for 5 days a week and miss family life? London is an expensive place - so I'm guessing 500-600/day in london is equivalent to 350-450/day in the north considering the expenses occured in travel and accommodation.

I'm in two minds - limit myself to contracts only in the north or look for london contracts. But I'm dreading the weekly travel and life away from lovely north. What does the rate need to be in London to tempt you to take up work there?

[SpontaneousOrder]

Around '99 I joined the military and went down to Devon to start training. Once I was eventually allowed out and about I was amazed at how cheap the beer was (coming from East Anglia). The large majority of the rest of the guys were from 'the north', and they were horrified to equal extent at how expensive the beer was.

I would GUESS that after expenses it would hardly be worth it, unless you were a single guy etc etc.

[CheeseSlice]

I'm guessing 500-600/day in london is equivalent to 350-450/day in the north considering the expenses occured in travel and accommodation.

Your mileage will vary.

Take a look at the following and scroll down to the table called "Top 30 Contract Locations":
Java Developer Contracts, Contractor Rates for a Java Developer
Averages for:
North West: £375
London: £500

Architect IT Contracts, Contractor Rates for an Architect
Averages for:
North West: £495
London: £525

So on one hand a Java developer in Manchester could have increased their rate by £125 per day by working in London
But an Architect may only increase theirs by £30 per day

[d000hg]

I reckon additional costs of £100/day are quite reasonable if you don't demand luxury - you have to subtract your current travel costs driving to a local client site.

For me I'd want to add £200/day but that's because I really don't want to work in London and if I was going to, I want to live in zone 1 in a nice serviced apartment and travel 1st class.

[The Spartan]

I'd agree with the £100 a day for expenses after 9 months of being here.

[TheFaQQer]

I'd agree with the £100 a day for expenses after 9 months of being here.

That's the figure that I tend to add on to my local rate to work in London.

It still normally works out better financially than looking for local work - I've also started telling clients that if I can work from home, then my rate could drop to make up for that, as an incentive to move them onto a remote working plan.

[The Spartan]

That's the figure that I tend to add on to my local rate to work in London.

It still normally works out better financially than looking for local work - I've also started telling clients that if I can work from home, then my rate could drop to make up for that, as an incentive to move them onto a remote working plan.

I'd agree it still does work out more than a local contract, eventually I'm hoping to move to remote working and will drop my rate to do so sounds like a great way to get it accomplished.

[jmo21]

I wouldn't just want an equalising rate (local +£100 to cover expenses)

I have 2 young kids and a missus at home that I want to spend time with, I don't want to live in a hotel/serviced apartment/B&B and eat restaurant food every night (been there, done that, got the belly)

It'd need to be a lot more to cover the inconvenience of working away.

My warchest is a big factor though, it not only covers the lean times, but also allows me to be picky enough to wait for local roles which, touch wood, has never been an issue so far.

[Batcher]

I tend to add £100-£150 per day to cover flights/travel & hotels. I seem to be able to make more profit when working away from home, don't know if this is down to me watching what I spend but I always manage out for beers and don't sit every evening in a hotel room.

I also mention that I am willing to drop the rate to WFH but usually it isn't mentioned when I start WFH so more profit for me

[oliverson]

As we all know majority of contracts are in London area and the rates are great. What do contractors living in northern areas do? I mean if you get a contract worth 500-600/day, would you stay in London for 5 days a week and miss family life? London is an expensive place - so I'm guessing 500-600/day in london is equivalent to 350-450/day in the north considering the expenses occured in travel and accommodation.

I'm in two minds - limit myself to contracts only in the north or look for london contracts. But I'm dreading the weekly travel and life away from lovely north. What does the rate need to be in London to tempt you to take up work there?

I've been doing this for years now. £ 100 a day is about the difference. However, it's getting harder and harder to secure contract work in the London/Banking sector because they're downsizing and offshoring massively. Expect stiff competition. If I could get the same rate minus my £ 100 back north where I live I'd be back in the drop of a hat as it's by far a better quality of life. Trouble is I can't. In 10 years contracting I've only had 3 years near home. The trick is to get that golden 1 day a week working from home. It means if you commute down in a morning, you are only away from home 3 nights a week. Psychologically, makes a big difference.